Perspectives on financial crimes in Roman‐Dutch law : Bribery, fraud and the general crime of falsity ( falsiteyt )

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identity the prevalence and kinds of financial crime in seventeenth and eighteenth century Roman‐Dutch law. Design/methodology/approach – The object is achieved by a legal and historical analysis of the available legal sources especially of the main Roman‐Dutch and other institutional authorities. Findings – It is found that the general crime of falsity in Roman‐Dutch law had a much greater ambit than the present‐day fraud and had it survived, would have been very valuable to combat present‐day financial crime more effectively. Research limitations/implications – Further research on other Roman‐Dutch sources on falsity. Originality/value – The paper shows there is much to learn from legal history in that the recognition of a general crime of falsity will very valuable to combat present‐day financial crime much more effectively. Of value to everybody engaged in the battle against financial crime.